Léon Cauvy (12 January 1874,

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

– 3 January 1933,

Algiers Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...

) was a French Orientalist painter.

Biography

He began his studies in 1890 at the local School of Fine Arts; winning several awards for his sketches and

ink wash paintings Ink wash painting ( zh, t=水墨畫, s=水墨画, p=shuǐmòhuà; ja, 水墨画, translit=suiboku-ga or ja, 墨絵, translit=sumi-e; ko, 수묵화, translit=sumukhwa) is a type of Chinese ink brush painting which uses black ink, such as tha ...

, although his interests soon turned to decorative work. Later, he went to Paris and spent some time studying with Albert Maignan at the

École des Beaux-arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth century ...

.Biographical notes
@ Univers d'Arts. Cauvy-Centennial

He participated in the

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...

from 1901 to 1903. At the Salon of 1907, he was awarded third place. That same year, he and

Paul Jouve Pierre-Paul Jouve (Marlotte, Seine-et-Marne, 16 March 1878 - Paris, 13 May 1973) was a French painter, sculptor and illustrator. He was notable for his paintings and sculptures of Africa's animals. He was first recipient of the Prix Abd-el-Ti ...

became the first winners of the Prix Abd-el-Tif. One of the benefits of the prize was a year's stay at the

Villa Abd-el-Tif The Villa Abd-el-Tif, also known as ''la Villa Medicis algérienne'', is a Moorish villa located in Algiers, Algeria. It is notable for having been set up in 1907 in emulation of the French Academy in Rome, the Villa Medici. It was, until 1962, h ...

in Algiers. He was already thirty-years old and had a promising career in France, but immediately became enamored of North Africa. He exhibited fifty of his paintings at an Orientalist exhibition in Paris in 1909 and, pleased with their reception, decided to remain in Algeria. Shortly after, he became Director of the ; a position he held until his death. In 1925, he was placed in charge of decorating the Algerian Pavilion at the

International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts The International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts (french: Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes) was a World's fair held in Paris, France, from April to October 1925. It was designed by the Fren ...

. After the exhibition, his works were moved to the "Palais d’Été"; official home and headquarters for the French admirals in Algiers (A building that would later be the scene for the assassination of

François Darlan Jean Louis Xavier François Darlan (7 August 1881 – 24 December 1942) was a French admiral and political figure. Born in Nérac, Darlan graduated from the ''École navale'' in 1902 and quickly advanced through the ranks following his service d ...

). Five years later, he designed the poster commemorating one-hundred years of French rule in Algeria. Thirty-thousand copies were made and distributed worldwide. This was followed by several more poster designs, for shipping companies in the tourist trade. In 1932, for his last major work, he created a large canvas depicting the

Ouled Naïl The Ouled Naïl (; ar, أولاد نايل) are an Arab-Berber tribe and a tribal confederation living in the Ouled Naïl Range, Algeria. They are found mainly in Bou Saâda, M'Sila and Djelfa, but there is also a significant number of them in ...

s that was shown at the Salon of the

Société des Artistes Français The Société des Artistes Français (, meaning "Society of French Artists") is the association of French painters and sculptors established in 1881. Its annual exhibition is called the "Salon des artistes français" (not to be confused with the ...

. Since 1990, it has been on display at the

Musée des Années Trente The Musée des Années Trente (Museum of the 1930s) is a municipal museum specializing in the fine arts, decorative arts, and industrial arts of the 1930s. It is located in the Espace Landowski at 28, Avenue André-Morizet, Boulogne-Billancourt, a ...

. Overall, he concentrated on scenes of daily life as opposed to the more "exotic" aspects of Arab culture. Many of his paintings have the appearance of

tapestries Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...

Selected paintings

(Narbonne) Embarquement au port d'Alger - Léon Cauvy - Musée des Beaux-Arts de Narbonne.jpg, ''Boarding at the port of Algiers.''-

Narbonne Narbonne (, also , ; oc, Narbona ; la, Narbo ; Late Latin:) is a commune in France, commune in Southern France in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region. It lies from Paris in the Aude Departments of Franc ...

Léon Cauvy 1.jpg, Idyll in

Tipaza Tipaza (formerly ''Tefessedt'', Chenoua-Berber: Bazar, ⴱⴰⵣⴰⵔ, ar, تيپازة) is the capital of the Tipaza Province, Algeria. When it was part of the Roman Empire, it was called '' Tipasa''. The modern town was founded in 1857, and is ...

Léon Cauvy 3.jpg, The Port of Algiers Cauvy Marché.jpg, In the Market Cauvy-Dancer.jpg, Algerian Dancer

References

External links

ArtNet: More works by Cauvy.
from "Le Patrimoine en Peril" @ OverBlog. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cauvy, Leon 1874 births 1933 deaths 20th-century French painters 20th-century French male artists Orientalist painters French people in French Algeria École des Beaux-Arts Artists from Montpellier

Biography

Selected paintings

See also

References

Further reading

External links